TAIYUAN - Five officials in north China's Shanxi province have been suspended from duty for reading newspapers or dozing off during a meeting, local authorities said Friday.

The five officials, all major leaders from county or district tax bureaus in the province, were given the penalty amid a provincial campaign to emphasize discipline among government officials, said Li Zhaoqian, secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) provincial commission for discipline inspection.

The officials were found reading newspapers or falling asleep at a video conference on government official discipline of the province on Tuesday.

Government and CPC officials are not allowed to leave post, play games, or attend recreational activities during office hours, and are forbidden from taking advantage of their posts or gambling at any time, according to the provincial disciplinary regulations.

Li said these disciplines would be reiterated during the campaign, which runs through December.